These
small group study notes contain outlines, cross-references, Bible study
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information inside. Visit our inductive Bible study main page for more studies on this and other books of the Bible.

11. But as a man of God you should run away
from these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love,
perseverance and gentleness. (Col
3:2, Php 3:7-14)

12. Fight the good fight of faith; grab
onto the eternal life that God called you to and which you have already
confessed in front of many witnesses (Ephesians 6:10-17).

13. I exhort you in the presence of God,
who is the life-giver, and Christ Jesus, who witnessed the good confession
before Pontius Pilate,

14. that you keep the command without fail
or condemnation until our Lord Jesus Christ appears,

15. and He will come at the proper time –
He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

16. who alone is immortal and dwells in
unapproachable light, whom no man can ever see. To Him be honor and eternal
power! Amen. (Titus 2:13, 1 Corinthians 4:5)

17. Tell those who are rich in this world
not to be puffed up or to set their hope on riches, which are uncertain.
Instead they should set their hope on God, who richly gives us all things to
enjoy. (mention verse David mentioned, can money buy the gift of God?)

18. Tell them also to do good, being rich
in good deeds, to be generous and quick to share, (Ephesians 2:10)

19. building for themselves the real
treasure of a true foundation for the future so that they can grasp onto life
indeed. (James 1:9-12, Php 3:20-21)

20. O Timothy, watch over what has been
given to your care, avoiding worldly and empty talk and the opposing arguments
of what is called falsely, “knowledge”- (1 Corinthians 2:12-16)

21. which some have followed and therefore
gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.

Outline:

I.Love of truth (11-14)

a.Zealous for righteousness (11)

b.Warrior of God (12-14)

II.Benediction (15-17)

III.Principles for wealthy
believers (17-19)

a.Trust in God (17)

b.Be generous (18)

c.Have the right perspective (19)

IV.Final warning (20-21)

V.Closing (21b)

Questions:

How does verse 11 connect with the verses
we studied last week? Flee from what things? Practically speaking, how can we
flee from the love of money?

Are you pursuing, striving after these
virtues? Or are you simply floating along?

What fight is Paul referring to?

Have you ever felt that you were in this
kind of spiritual fight? Describe it to us.

How would it look like in your life if you
were dedicating yourself to obeying the commands in verses 11-12?

Eternal life is something that God gives us
so how can we lay hold of it? Is it possible to grip this world and eternal
life?

When will Jesus come back? How should His
return affect our lives now?

What is the commandment in verse 14?

So what attitude should rich believes have
towards their money?

What are the advantages and disadvantages
of being rich? (look at from spiritual perspective)

What command was to be given to them?

Teaching Points-

The phrase “man of God” occurs 78 times in
the Bible. It is used of Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, David, and some other
prophets. It is used to refer to men who had an official function serving God.
In the Old Testament it is used basically the same as the word “prophet”. In
the New Testament the phrase only occurs twice, both times in Timothy. It
clearly carries the idea of a servant of God, a minister serving in an official
capacity in God’s church. It is also an honorable title. Finally, it shows
Timothy his perspective should not be on the riches of this world, but He
should set His mind on God and the things of His kingdom.

11. The “man of God” should be
single-minded. These virtues will not come naturally or easily. We need to
labor and work for it (1 Timothy 4:10)

12. If you don’t fight and “agonize” you
will be swept away by the evil forces. We need to grip onto the eternal life
that God gives us and not let go. Again that means we need to set our mind on
the things above. We need to labor and strive for godliness. We need to
discipline ourselves. It also carries the assumption that we need to “let go”
of the things of this world. We can’t grasp onto both things at once (analogy
from Indiana Jones).

14. This commandment could refer to the
whole Word of God, or perhaps the commands in verses 11-12.

15. Jesus will come back at the proper
time, the perfect time, not too early and not too late. It could be anytime.
This should motivate us to godly living.

17-19. Here Paul gives Timothy instructions
for rich believers. It is not sin for them to be rich. Being wealthy comes with
both advantages and disadvantages for the believer. One major danger is rich
people tend to trust in their money instead of in God. They make plans based on
their bank account instead of based on trust in God. Another danger is it can
draw the focus of a believer downward instead of upwards. However, God blesses
a believer with wealth (remember it should not be strived after) then a
believer is responsible to be a good steward and has many opportunities to be
generous and share. God will hold them accountable for how they use their
money, selfishly or selflessly. Finally, they will receive great rewards for
eternity if they use their wealth wisely.

Definitions-

Flee – Pheugo: to run away (literally or
figuratively), to shun, sometimes translated to escape.

Gentleness – Praus: mild, humble

Fight – From the Greek word comes the
English word “agonize”. Was used in “military and athletic endeavors to
describe the concentration, discipline, and extreme effort needed to win.”
Spiritual conflict with Satan’s kingdom.